U.S. Pat. No. 8,100,133 describes a robotic system in which indicators are provided to communicate which tool currently mounted on a robotic system is to be removed and which replacement tool currently available for mounting is to take its place. In this system, replacement tools are chosen for their functionality, so there is generally no uncertainty in which replacement tool of a number of candidate replacement tools is to be selected.
Robotic systems may also be equipped, however, with a tool which is selected from a number of tools of varying geometries for use at a work site. When the work site dimensions are not precisely known, selection of an appropriate tool may be subjectively made based upon a visual estimate of the work site dimensions. If the visual estimate is inaccurate, then the selected tool may need to be replaced by another tool, thus causing delay in the performance of work activity performed by the robotic system.
Further, during the performance of robotic activity at the work site, the work space within the work site may change for various reasons such as the movement of objects within the work site. In this case, a tool currently mounted on the robotic system may need to be replaced, not for functionality reasons, but for geometry reasons. In particular, a longer or shorter tool may be required for optimal performance within the changed work site space. Thus, an initially mounted tool may need to be replaced by a geometrically appropriate tool which is better suited for the work site dimensions, thereby causing further delay in the performance of work activity performed by the robotic system.